Various types of cooling and ventilation arrangements have been devised for commercial cooking appliances of the type having open, substantially horizontal cooking surfaces. In these cooking appliances, the area above and in front of the cooking surface is open for access by the cook. The ventilation system generally draws room air over the cooking surface and up into an overhead hood where it may be mixed with makeup air provided from the outside and then exhausted by the combined action of an exhaust fan and the flow of the circulating makeup air. Such systems, however, provide ventilation but no significant cooling of the cooking appliance itself, nor is there provided any heat shielding for heat radiated from the appliance. These systems are basically exhaust or ventilation systems.
For cooking ovens, particularly the domestic self-cleaning type oven, ventilation systems have been provided which include means for flowing air over portions of the oven in order to maintain oven temperature below a maximum allowable temperature. In such arrangements, particularly those which are built into a wall, exhaust systems have been arranged to draw air in from the adjacent room and cause the air to flow over the oven sides for exhaust to the outside. These oven systems do not involve the use of outside makeup air for cooling and, thus, are less efficient in cooling. Moreover, they will greatly affect the temperature of the room in which the oven is installed because of the large amounts of ventilation air that is withdrawn from the room for ventilation of the oven. Furthermore, neither such ovens nor open top cooking appliances provide any arrangement for cooling or heat shielding the front of the oven and none provide for such cooling by means of makeup air drawn from the outside.
In pizza ovens, particularly those of the type which have a number of cooking levels and in which the cooking spaces are fully enclosed, having access through relatively large doors at the front of the oven, ventilation has been provided by conventional exhaust fans. Exhaust gases containing combustion products are vented independently through conventional means. No heat shielding, other than conventional insulation in oven wall construction, has been provided.
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide improved ventilation and heat shielding of cooking appliances.